Dome trap

ABSTRACT

An improved dome shaped trap for bathroom, kitchen or other sink comprising a dome shaped trap, threadably attached to a cover. The cover comprises a vertical conduit adapted to receive the existing vertical influent drain from the sink, a horizontal conduit adapted to be attached to the existing effluent exit drain, the vertical conduit extending down below the water line, providing an extension for the exisiting influent drain, making the trap easily adjustable to be installed any existing sink. The dome trap is easily removable by hand, by unscrewing it from the cover, to clean out any debris clogging the line or to retrieve any item inadvertently dropped into the sink and down the drain into the dome trap.

[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of my pendingapplication No. 09/713,955 filed Nov. 16, 2000.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Common household sinks in the bathroom and kitchen require adrain trap that trap solid waste matter, such as hair and othermaterials that commonly clog drains. The usual drain trap is a U-shapedpipe installed under most household, and other sinks. The U-shapedportion of the drain trap remains full of water, which provides abarrier against odors backing up from the sewer line through the sink.

[0003] If the common drain trap gets clogged, most persons try to use achemical to dissolve the clog, such as “Drano” or “Liquid Plumber”.Sometimes that works and sometimes it does not. Even if it works, itusually takes several hours or longer to take effect. If chemicals donot work, the trap is quite difficult to open to clean out, usuallyrequiring a call to a plumber.

[0004] In addition, a special problem exists if something valuable, suchas a ring, is dropped down the drain. The drain must be taken apart toretrieve the lost item, again by a plumber.

[0005] A spill free trap is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,724 toVosper, dated Nov. 3, 1992, which shows a container trap. Vosper'sconcept is to provide a “spill free” trap designed so that water doesnot spill when the trap is opened. Having a spill free trap is virtuallyimpossible, since the drain can be clogged to the top of the sink. Theproblem with Vosper's trap is that existing sink inlet line 30 mustextend down below the water line. When the trap is moved up so that line30 extends below the water line, outlet drain line 40 may not match upwith the exit conduit (not numbered) of Vosper's trap. The inverse mayalso be true. If Vosper's device has to be moved down so as to match upwith exit line 40, inlet line 30 may not extend below the water line, inwhich case the device will not function as a trap. Vosper has verylittle vertical adjustment available to match up with exit drain line40.

[0006] Another device is shown by Uriarte 4,681,131 who discloses acomplex floating body membrane which floats on the top of the water inthe trap to stop the flow of sewer gases, so that the sink drain linedoes not have to extend below the water line in the trap. The problemwith the Uriarte device is that it requires moving parts with a membraneand the aid of the liquid to prevent sewer gases from going back up thedrain line. Once assembled the Uriarte device cannot be disassembledlest the membrane fall out making reassembly quite difficult. There isno provision for cleaning out the trap, which may well contain foreignparticles which may clog or foul the membrane. The trap of Uriarte isopened only at the time of manufacture, to install the membranemechanism, and cannot be opened thereafter, as Uriarte shows noremovable connection. Certainly, the homeowner cannot open the trap toclear it.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Applicant's invention comprises a large dome shaped trap whichcan easily be opened by any person, simply by unscrewing the dome trapfrom its cover. The dome trap is threadably attached to its cover, aswill be described, but requires only hand tightening, so that it iseasily removed to clean the trap or retrieve a lost object.

[0008] In addition, replacing the normal U-shaped trap in a householdsink is often not a easy task because the location of the exit line orconduit may not match up with the exit line of the new trap. Applicant'strap comprises an internal conduit which allows the trap, when it isinstalled, to be highly vertically adjustable, and moved up or down agreat distance, so that it easily matches the position of the fixedinfluent vertical drain line and the fixed horizontal effluent exit lineof nearly every sink.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the invention areas follows:

[0010] It is an object of the present invention to provide a drain trapfor a common household sink which protects the household from sewergasses, is easily installed, readily accessible, and easy to open toclean.

[0011] Another object of the invention is to provide such a device whichis large enough to collect a substantial amount of waste which mayeasily be opened by hand if the drain becomes clogged.

[0012] Still a further object of the invention is to provide such adevice which is significantly adjustable, so that it may be installed onany existing sink.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013]FIG. 1 is a front view of the dome drain trap of this invention;

[0014]FIG. 2 is a cross-section of the drain trap and the incoming andoutgoing lines to which it is attached.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a common householdsink 10 having a faucet 12 and hot and cold water handles 14 and 16.Water drains from sink 10 down influent drain line tailpiece 18. Drainline 18 extends down into dome drain trap 20. Dome drain trap 20comprises a dome shaped bowl 22 and a cover 24. Cover 24 and dome 22threadably connect together at threaded connections 26 and 27, at whichthere is gasket seal 28. Dome 22 may be tightened by hand only, ontocover 24 and creates a perfectly water tight seal. Thus, it may beunscrewed and dome 22 removed without the use of any tools.

[0016] Dome trap 20 also comprises an internal vertical pipe or conduit30 which is an integral part of cover 24 and runs from the top of cover24 down into dome 22, so that it extends below water line 25, well downinto the weir 29 of dome 22, below effluent exit line 34 and belowthreded connections 26 and 27 where cover 24 and dome 22 threadablyconnect. Vertical conduit 30 is manufactured as an integral part ofcover 24. Dome trap 20 may be made of any convenient material, the mostpractical being either ABS (Acrylonitryl-butadyene-styrene) or PVC(Polyvinylchloride) plastic. The two parts of the trap are bothinjection molded. One part is the dome trap 22. The other part is thecover 24 having internal vertical conduit 30 molded as a part thereof.

[0017] Exit line 32 is also a part of dome trap 20, molded as a part ofcover 24, adapted to be connected to existing effluent exit drain line34. Drain line 18 fits into vertical conduit 30 and is held bycompression nut 36, which threadably attaches to cover 24 at threads 38.Compression nut 36 has an integrated plastic washer or a non-integratedplastic slip washer 40. Horizontal conduit 32 attaches to exit line 34by compression nut 44 having an integrated plastic washer or anon-integrated plastic slip washer 46.

[0018] Vertical conduit, drain line 30, for most sinks, is made slightlyover 1½ inches in inside diameter, while the inside diameter of moststandard sink drain lines, such as drain line 18, is 1½ inches. Becausedrain line 18 is usually made of metal its gauge will be very thin anddrain line 18 will slide into vertical conduit 30 in a verticaldirection. Vertical conduit 30 can be made very slightly larger indiameter, so that drain line 18 slides tightly but more easily intovertical conduit 30. By drain line 18 fitting tightly into verticalconduit 30, the entire assembly is more solid, secure and tight fitting,which makes removal of dome 22 easier.

[0019] The ability to have drain line 18 slide into drain line 30, inthe vertical direction, is critical, because when installing a new trap,lining up exit line 32 with the existing house effluent exit drain 34 isabsolutely necessary to install a new trap, such as dome trap 20.Effluent exit drains, such as 34, that already exist in sinkinstallations vary considerably in vertical location. Without theability to slide dome trap 20 up and down on drain line 18, in manycases it would be impossible to install a new trap, since the horizontalexit lines would not meet properly. Vertical line 30, molded as aninternal part of cover 24, allows great adjustability in lining up exitdrain line 32 and effluent exit line 34.

[0020] In addition, drain line 18 does not have to itself extend belowthe water line 25, since internal vertical conduit 30 does so, and drainline 18 only has to slide a small distance into vertical conduit 30 ofcover 24 and be held by compression nut 36. This means 1) that drainlines which are short do not have to be modified and 2) exit line 32 canbe easily matched up and connected to the existing house effluent exitdrain line 34. This is of great value to a homeowner or plumber who isreplacing the existing sink trap. Furthermore, those persons who want toinstall Applicant's dome trap in their sinks because of its ease inbeing opened for cleaning, can do so with ease. For the do-it-yourselfhomeowner, Applicant's dome trap is easy to install in any existing sinkand it is easy to open and clean in the event of a clog. It is also easyto open to retrieve an item inadvertently dropped into the sink.

[0021] Long drain lines 18, on the other hand, can slide all the waydown through vertical conduit 30 and even extend below its terminus 31.

[0022] Waste water 42, entering from drain line 18, will fill dome trap22 and clarified waste water will rise against gravity to crown weirlevel 49 or slightly above crown weir level 49, above exit line 32 andexisting effluent exit line 34. As more water enters dome trap 20, itrises outside of internal conduit line 30, and passes out exit line 32,34.

[0023] If the drain or the trap becomes clogged, dome 22 can beunscrewed by hand to clean out the trap. When dome 22 is removed, water42, which fills above the level of removable dome 22, will spill out,and a container such as a bucket, should be placed underneath the trap,when it is being opened.

Having thus described the invention, I claim: 1: A drain trap for a sinkhaving an influent drain line and an effluent exit line comprising, adome shaped trap threadably attached to a cover, a vertical conduitinside of said cover, which is an integral part of said cover, the lowerend of said vertical conduit extending below the water line in the trap,said vertical conduit adapted to receive the influent sink drain line, ahorizontal conduit above the dome shaped trap and the lower end of thevertical conduit, adapted to be attached to the effluent exit line. 2:The device of claim 1 further comprising means to seal the connectionbetween drain line and the vertical conduit, and the connection betweenthe horizontal conduit and the exit line. 3: The device of claim 2 inwhich said means is a compression nut. 4: The device of claim 3 in whichsaid compression nut has an integrated plastic washer. 5: The device ofclaim 3 in which said compression nut has a non-integrated plastic slipwasher. 6: The device of claim 1 in which the dome trap is made ofplastic. 7: The device of claim 1 in which the cover, vertical conduitand horizontal conduit are all injection molded as a single integratedunit. 8: The device of claim 1 in which the inside diameter of thevertical conduit is slightly larger than the drain line allowing thedrain line to slide tightly into the vertical conduit. 9: A drain trapfor a sink having an influent drain line and an effluent exit linecomprising, a dome shaped trap threadably attached to a cover, avertical conduit inside of said cover, which is an integral part of saidcover, the lower end of said vertical conduit extending below the waterline in the trap, and below the effluent exit line, said verticalconduit adapted to receive the influent sink drain line, a horizontalconduit which is also an integral part of said cover, located above thedome shaped trap and above the lower end of the vertical conduit,adapted to be attached to the sink effluent exit line. 10: The device ofclaim 9 in which the cover the vertical conduit and the horizontalconduit are all injection molded as a single integrated unit. 11: Thedevice of claim 10 further comprising means to seal the connectionbetween drain line and the vertical conduit, and the connection betweenthe horizontal conduit and the exit line. 12: The device of claim 11 inwhich said means is a compression nut. 13: The device of claim 12 inwhich said compression nut has an integrated plastic washer. 14: Thedevice of claim 12 in which said compression nut has a non-integratedplastic slip washer. 15: The device of claim 10 in which the dome trapis made of plastic. 16: The device of claim 10 in which the insidediameter of the vertical conduit is slightly larger than the drain lineallowing the drain line to slide tightly into the vertical conduit. 17:A drain trap for a sink having an influent drain line and an effluentexit line comprising, a dome shaped trap threadably attached to a cover,a vertical conduit inside of said cover, which is an integral part ofsaid cover, the lower end of said vertical conduit extending below thewater line in the trap, and below the threadable connection point of thecover and dome, said vertical conduit adapted to receive the influentsink drain line, a horizontal conduit above the dome shaped trap and thelower end of the vertical conduit, adapted to be attached to theeffluent exit line. 18: The device of claim 17 in which the cover,vertical conduit and horizontal conduit are all injection molded as asingle integrated unit. 19: The device of claim 17 in which the insidediameter of the vertical conduit is slightly larger than the drain lineallowing the drain line to slide tightly into the vertical conduit.